AzerNews Weekly, Azerbaijan
Dec 15 2009
Azeri lawmakers call on Obama to veto aid to separatists
15-12-2009 23:10:59
Azerbaijani lawmakers have appealed to US President Barack Obama and
Congress over the recent allocation of assistance worth $8 million to
the self-proclaimed Upper (Nagorno) Garabagh republic for 2010, which
has raised eyebrows in Azerbaijan. The Milli Majlis members expressed
hope that the decision would be vetoed.
The strongly-worded appeal, unanimously adopted in parliament on
Tuesday, labeled the allocation of aid to the separatist regime as
actual moral support to the Armenian occupation of Azerbaijani
territories.
`If this is indeed humanitarian aid, the U.S. should have included
that money in the funds provided to Azerbaijan, whose territorial
integrity has been recognized. In this case though, Armenia will be at
ease and will prolong reaching peace a little further,’ the statement
said.
Upper Garabagh is an Azerbaijani region occupied by Armenia since a
1994 cease-fire ended separatist hostilities that killed an estimated
30,000 people and ousted about one million Azerbaijanis from their
homes. Armenia continues to occupy Upper Garabagh and seven other
Azerbaijani districts in defiance of international law. Recently, US
legislators approved the allocation of financial aid to the separatist
regime, though the aid package offered by the Obama administration in
May did not include assistance to the self-proclaimed republic. The US
embassy in Baku quickly attempted to defuse tension, with its
spokesman saying Washington does not recognize a government called
`the Upper (Nagorno) Garabagh republic’ and that this was humanitarian
aid provided for projects like mine clearance being implemented by
NGOs.
In conclusion, the Azerbaijani MPs expressed hope that President
Obama, who has recently been awarded with the Nobel Peace Prize, would
use his veto power to counter the allocation of assistance to the
separatist regime.
Parliament Speaker Ogtay Asadov said in his remarks that pro- Armenian
congressmen are rejoicing at the decision to allot aid to the
self-styled republic and are campaigning with the words `aid has been
provided to the second Armenian state.’
The speaker also noted that the US Congress has desginated $22 million
assistance for Azerbaijan, and the State Department has been
instructed to ensure that these funds are not spent for military
purposes.
`It is written that the State Department should be responsible for the
$22m allocated to Azerbaijan to make sure that Azerbaijan will not
spend this money on waging a war. They are allotting $8m to them [the
separatist regime] and, moreover, are leveling demands to us. There is
no principle of fairness here,’ Asadov said.
Musa Guliyev, who represents the ruling Yeni Azerbaijan Party (YAP),
said the US decision runs counter to all principles of international
law. `If the U.S., which recognizes Azerbaijan’s territorial
integrity, wants to allocate aid to Upper Garabagh, it has to do so
through Azerbaijan.’
Another YAP member, Ali Huseynov, the head of the parliamentary
committee on legal policy and state building, said that, `regardless
of the political stance, the Congress’ decision is a concern for
everyone.’
`The U.S. itself will be hurt the most by this decision,’ Huseynov
said. `America will lose its image as a reliable mediator [as part of
the OSCE Minsk Group brokering settlement to the Armenia-Azerbaijan
conflict].
Panah Huseyn, a representative of Musavat, Azerbaijan’s biggest
opposition party, concurred with his counterparts. `There is no
differences of opinion between the authorities and opposition on the
Garabagh issue.’*